Pre-Arrival Essentials: Making Your Travel Arrangements
Booking Your Flight
You must arrange for your U.S. domestic and international flights to Cuba
to participate in your IFSA-Butler program. Read all flight information carefully and
do not purchase a ticket until you have been accepted into a program.
Click here to download tips for international travelers.
Group Flight Option:
Advantage Travel arranges a group flight to Havana for IFSA-Butler's program in Cuba. Below are some details about the group flight option:
The group flight goes to Havana and arrives on the program start date. If you want to fly to Cuba with the group, you must reserve a spot and pay for it by the deadline listed. Please note that group flights can sell out before the deadline.
Fill out the Advantage Travelgroup flight reservation formfor your program and submit your payment online, or download the form and mail it to Advantage Travel with your payment.
The group flight fee includes a return fare to the U.S. city of departure. Add-on tickets for other U.S. cities are available for an additional fee. Be sure to specify a return date when booking your group flight ticket.
You may choose a different return flight from Cuba, although due to visa regulations, you must depart on the program end date.
IFSA-Butler staff will meet you at the airport upon arrival and transport you to the orientation site.
You will meet other students on the program before arriving abroad.
An experienced travel agent will work on your behalf to re-issue your ticket if you miss a flight.
Ticket change fees may be lower than tickets you buy independently
We have representatives monitoring flight departures to ensure that you make the group flight. If you are delayed for any reason, we will contact our office abroad so our staff know when to expect your arrival. IFSA-Butler staff do not monitor return flights.
If you don't choose to participate in the group flight, you'll be considered an independent traveler and you'll need to make your own travel arrangements. Things to keep in mind if you book your own travel:
You must meet at your programs designated meeting point in Havana by 5 p.m. on the program start date.
You must attend the mandatory IFSA-Butler orientation at the start of your program.
You must arrange your own transportation from the airport to the meeting point. IFSA-Butler staff will not be able to meet you at the airport or pick you up.
Students traveling independently must pay for their own return transportation to the airport.
Directions to each program's meeting point will be provided in the Travel Essentials newsletter prior to your departure.
Advantages of traveling independently:
While you won't have the additional services provided with the group flight, it could be a more budget-friendly option to purchase flights on your own.
You can set your own flight schedule that works best for you, as long as you arrive at designated meeting point in Havana by 5 p.m. on the program start date.
It may be more cost effective to fly directly from elsewhere if you live farther from the group flight departing airport.
Return Flights:
You must schedule a return flight on the program end date. Due to visa regulations, you are not permitted to stay in Havana after this date. Be sure to confirm the exam schedule and the last date of your program once you arrive at your host university.
Student Visa:
IFSA-Butler will process visa applications on behalf of students if the proper paperwork is submitted to the student portal by the deadline. The arrival of the student visa is often unknown and dependent on the Cuban Embassy. The Embassy may produce the visa weeks in advance and sometimes only a few days prior to your U.S. departure. If visas are issued close to the departure date, we do our best to ship them to you prior to your departure. Due to the nature of international shipping for students who are currently outside the U.S., delays may cause the student visa not to arrive on time. In such a case, the student would have to travel to Cuba on a tourist visa. IFSA-Butler is not responsible for any costs that are incurred as a result.
Log Your Travel Plans
Have your travel plans squared away? Be sure to share the details on yourstudent portalas soon as you've finalized your plans so our Cuba staff will know when to greet you!
